A Man Who Wasn't There
by thessaly fuchsia
Summary: Chloe must solve a murder mystery with the help of a certain bald billionaire...Chlex, of course.
1. Chapter 1

It was the perfect weather for a funeral.

The rain beat heavily upon the small group of black clad mourners clustered about the gravesite. They were huddled under umbrellas which afforded them scant protection from the wind swept rain. The sky was dark and overcast, and the faint rumble of thunder in the distance promised more bad weather to come. A somber priest intoned the funeral rite for the graveside service, his voice almost drowned out by the patter of the rain and his shimmering white vestments drenched. The wind whipped the rain like sharp daggers against the faces of the mourners, causing many to shiver and cough hoarsely from the cold.

Chloe Sullivan stood numb, not even noticing the chill of the ice cold rain against her skin.

She stared down at the open grave, her mind unable to register what she was looking at. Dumbly, her eyes rose to the small group of mourners gathered around the grave. Gabe Sullivan stood grimly beside his daughter, his head bowed and his hands clasped loosely together. The Kents stood off to one side, their faces pale and sad in the gloomy light of the darkening day. Jonathan's hand lay loosely upon his son's shoulder, but Clark didn't even seem to notice it. His face was absolutely expressionless as he stared at the open grave, but Chloe noticed that his eyes were bright with tears. She looked away quickly, once again feeling the numb blankness and guilt that she had carried around with her since hearing the news.

She knew she shouldn't feel guilty, that it wasn't her fault that she couldn't feel as much sorrow as Clark did. She couldn't help wondering though what sort of person she was not to feel any more sorrow than she did feel. There were excuses she told herself. They had never really been close friends, although they had once pretended to be. The past lay too heavy between the two of them, like a millstone wearing both of them down. The tension and the resentment burned like a fiery bush when they were together, and now Chloe shook her head dolefully, wondering why she was thinking in such religious metaphors. But it still made her feel guilty, the fact that she didn't feel as sad as she should that someone she had once called a friend was now dead.

"_Because I couldn't trust you"_

Chloe shook her head again, trying to forget the past and not wanting to think ill of the dead. But it still whispered in her head, the same charge over and over again,

"_Because I couldn't trust you"_

"Oh god, why did she have to die! Why did Lana have to die? She was so young!"

Chloe's head shot up. The former Nell Potter, who was now Nell Winters, was clinging tearfully to her husband Dean Winter's arm, harsh sobs escaping her throat as she stared down at the grave of her dead niece. "Why did she have to die!" Nell cried out again, her sobs becoming even more violent as Dean awkwardly patted her back.

"_Because I couldn't trust you"_

It had been like a slap in the face when, under the effects of the truth serum, Lana had told Chloe this. Chloe had tried and tried to be friends with Lana, had even opened up her house to her when she needed a place to stay. It was in that second though that Chloe had realized a truth that she had been too deliberately blind to see.

They were never going to be friends.

And she had also realized something else, something that had made her feel free and light for the first time in a long while. It had dawned on her like a revelation. It was the fact that she didn't particularly want to be friends with Lana. She had always thought that she should, because of Clark, but at that second she knew that not only would they never be true friends, but that she didn't really care.

Lana had gone off to Paris and hadn't even bothered to attend Chloe's own funeral when everyone had believed her to be dead. Chloe though had been okay with this. For Clark's sake the two girls had made a feeble attempt at pretending to be friends when Lana returned from Paris, but neither of their hearts was really into it. And then last week Lana had been found brutally murdered at her apartment at the Talon. Chloe still couldn't get over the chilling shock of Lana's death. She would forget about it for a few minutes, and then suddenly remember it with a start, flowing like cold water through her veins. She may not have been friends with Lana, but she still couldn't help sympathizing with the girl who had died in such a brutal fashion.

The rest of the service passed in a blur. Rain, tears, thunder, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Clark laying a wreath of lilies gently on Lana's headstone, Nell throwing herself onto the grave and sobbing her heart out. Chloe watched this blankly, numbly wondering why on earth Nell was so heartbroken since she hadn't seen her niece in years. Then they were walking through the squelching mud of the cemetery, the rain beating down even harder upon their umbrellas. Chloe turned for a last look at the gravesite and it was at that second that her umbrella got blown out of her hands by the high winds and went soaring across the cemetery lawns. Chloe could only stare after it. Sighing, she walked through the pouring rain over to her car and wearily got in. Gabe would be driving the station wagon over to the Kent farm to stay with them for a few hours. Chloe only wanted to get home and take a long, hot shower and then go to bed. Some of her numbness seemed to be fading and she found herself feeling weary and in need of a good long nap.

Chloe had just turned the engine on when she noticed the folded piece of paper on the passenger seat. She stared down at it blankly, much as she had stared at her umbrella when it had flown away. The paper looked as if it had been folded over and over in order to make it as small as possible. Chloe calmly turned off the engine and very gingerly picked up the note. For a second she had the wildest feeling that it would burn her fingers when she touched it, but of course it didn't. It felt like a regular piece of folded up paper. She carefully unfolded it, and then her heart skipped a beat when she saw the words that were written upon it:

**Luthor knows more than he's telling.**

Her hands shaking, Chloe slipped the paper into the pocket of her jacket and then turned on the engine once more. But instead of going home she determinedly drove past her turn and headed on to the road that would take her to the Luthor mansion. She had no idea who had left the note for her to find, or what it meant, but there was one thing she did know.

It was Lex who had discovered Lana's body the day she was murdered.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update, but I was unfortunately extremely busy with real life concerns and couldn't get the time to update. I should be able to update frequently now. Just a reminder, this fic is set during 4th season (because it was started and planned out that season) so that's why Jason is still around and Lionel is still in his "reformed" stage.

Chapter 2.

The Luthor mansion was much the same as it had always been: large, dark, musty and old. As Chloe walked through its familiar halls she couldn't help but dwell upon the past and the strange and sometimes frightening events that had occurred there. Whispers of these past times plagued her as she wandered through the twisting and winding halls of the great mansion. Echoes of memories chased one another up and down the corridors and chasms of her mind. She could still hear the voices, almost as if she herself had traveled back in time, and was reliving it all over again…

"_I'll protect you, Chloe. You have my word."_

"Why don't you just walk away from your dad?" 

"_I look forward to resuming our verbal judo."_

"_I'll protect you, Chloe. You have my word."_

"_I was thinking about what you said, and I-I need your help"_

"_I want him to love me"_

"_I'll protect you, Chloe. You have my word."_

Chloe was so wrapped up in these memories that she almost didn't see the flash of yellow outside the small mullioned window that she was passing. She did a quick double take, and then looked again more closely out the window. This time she saw a figure hurrying through the side gardens away from the castle. A male figure with light hair, and wearing a bright yellow jacket…Chloe's eyes narrowed as she studied the rapidly departing individual. "Jason…" she whispered. Her mind whirled with infinite scenarios and reasons as to why Jason should be skulking about the Luthor Castle instead of attending the funeral of his girlfriend. Chloe was so deep in concentration on this subject that she nearly jumped a mile when a loud, horribly familiar voice boomed out behind her.

"Why, Ms. Sullivan. How delightful to see you again. I trust both you and your father are well?"

Chloe whirled around sharply, and then could only stare in shock at the man standing before her. "What….what the hell are you doing here?" she finally managed to sputter out.

Lionel Luthor laughed heartily. "Please Ms. Sullivan, there's no reason to be frightened of me or to feel threatened by my presence. I assure you that I have completely reformed my ways. I am a new man, Ms. Sullivan, and I'm trying to become a useful and productive member of society now. Surely Lex has told you of the charity that I have started?"

Chloe stared at Lionel in bewildered suspicion. She had of course known that he had been released from prison, and this knowledge had kept her up many sleepless nights, although she would never admit to anyone just how frightened she was. Knowing that Lionel was out and about was one thing, but coming upon him unexpectedly in a dark and lonely corridor was quite another. "What sort of game are you playing, Lionel?" Chloe asked carefully, her voice quivering a bit as she slowly backed away from the still smiling man. Lionel only chuckled in reply, a friendly, almost indulgent smile upon his face, as if he were humoring a small, not very bright, child.

"Game? I'm not playing any sort of game, Ms. Sullivan." He said kindly, moving closer to her, "And I would like to apologize for the dastardly way that I have treated you in the past. It breaks my heart to think of the fear that I must have put you through all last year, knowing that you were completely in my power and sadly helpless against me, with only my son to protect you, although the poor boy could barely protect himself. Knowing that I could ruin the lives of you, your family, and your friends in just a heart beat." Lionel had drifted closer to Chloe as he was speaking, and she had backed up slowly until she felt the cold stonewall of the hallway behind her hit her back. Lionel now leaned in closer, the large, friendly smile still frozen upon his bearded face. "I would like to apologize for my behavior, Ms. Sullivan, and ask your forgiveness." He whispered in a low, sibilant hiss. "Please forgive me."

Chloe could only stare up at Lionel, like a mouse mesmerized by the stare of a deadly snake. Lionel lifted a hand slowly towards her face, and suddenly Chloe awoke from her daze. She gasped, and then shoved him away from her as hard as she could. "Get the hell away from me, Lionel!" she cried out, her voice quivering with both fear and anger, but mainly anger. "I don't know what sort of game your playing, but I'm not going to fall for it. I don't believe this born-again crap that you're spouting. And I don't think Lex will appreciate you skulking around his house without his permission so-"

"But my dear girl," Lionel chuckled, backing away from Chloe. The friendly smile was still plastered upon his face, but Chloe thought that she could detect a strange gleam in his eyes. "I'm not here without my son's permission. In fact, through the kindness of his heart, he's letting me live here with him. It's very important for us to reestablish our father-son bonds." Lionel said in an earnest, sincere tone.

"Lex is letting you live here?" Chloe said in confusion, almost at a loss for words, "After everything you've done to him…to me and my father…Lex is trusting you enough to let you stay here?"

"Unlike certain others I could mention, my son realizes that I have really become a changed man." Lionel's tone grew patient and long suffering, "I can understand that people may not trust me at first, but I do hope that soon they will soon learn to accept and trust me, and not to let old petty prejudices and biases get in the way." He moved over to a nearby window, staring down at the grounds of the castle below, "Ah, it looks as if the rain has stopped at last. That reminds me, Ms. Sullivan," Lionel whirled around quickly to face Chloe again, his face shining with benevolence, "Ms. Lang's funeral was today, was it not?"

"That's hardly any of your business, Lionel." Chloe snapped, her voice tinged with distrust and suspicion.

Lionel's smile deepened. "Ah, poor Lana Lang. The world has surely lost one of its greatest jewels. Oh, by the way, were you aware, Ms. Sullivan, that it rained during your own funeral? When that strange, tragic accident concerning the safe house explosion

occurred-"

"It wasn't an accident!" Chloe interrupted savagely. "You tried to kill me and my father!"

Lionel shook his head indulgently, a glint of kindly amusement upon his face, and continued, "-and everybody believed you to be dead? Unfortunately, I couldn't attend your funeral since I was…er, detained at the time, but a certain friend of mine was able to attend. He said it was quite beautiful. He also mentioned that your relations were able to buy the cemetery plots for Mr. Sullivan and yourself for quite a cheap price. Funerals are a sadly costly business, especially for the unemployed, so it must have been a comfort for them to buy your plots for such a bargain. And it must be a comfort to know that your cemetery plot is still there, already paid for and waiting for you, just in case you should need it sometime again in the near future." Lionel glanced at his watch. "And now it looks as if I shall have to take my leave of you, Ms. Sullivan. I have a meeting to get to at 5:00 concerning my charity. Good day and good luck." And with that he sailed down the hall and was gone.

Chloe could only stare after him, her heart pounding and her legs trembling with a mixture of both rage and fear. She had a wild urge to rush down the hall and attack him, to cause him pain just as he'd caused her and her family pain, but she quickly gained control of herself. Taking a deep breath, she grimly squared her shoulders and shakily made her way towards Lex's office.

A/N: I promise that Lex will be in the next chapter!


End file.
